I reviewed the Rowkin Bit Charge Stereo Earbuds some time ago. (Read the review.) They weren’t perfect, but I liked them a lot. Now the company has released the Rowkin Micro. Similar to the Bit Charge, they also fall short of perfection but still, I do like them a great deal. Read on for the good… and the not-so-good.
At an MSRP of $129.99, the Micro are affordable and are even easier to carry than the Bit Charge. In fact, from the perspective of both appearance and audio, the Micro look to be the same earbuds as those shipping with the Bit Charge. The difference? We’ll get to that in a moment.
Rowkin describes the Micro this way:
Always moving forward, Rowkin introduces the Micro, our smallest, most convenient truly wireless earbuds yet. Housed in a lightweight glossy polymer capsule, the Micro is almost half the size of a business card. The tiny case packs up to four on-the-go earbud charges for a full 12 hour day of stereo music and crystal clear phone calls.
Small size, superior sound – the Micro Rowkin earbuds bring stereo sound and clear calls in the world’s smallest earbud. One-touch Bluetooth setup makes pairing with your iOS or Android device possible in a matter of seconds. Without wires to hold you back, what will you do next?
The Micro is compatible with the iPhone 8, 8 Plus, X, and any device with the current Bluetooth standard. That makes them ideal for someone looking to use wireless earbuds with a number of different devices.
Inside the box, you get the earbuds, a charging case, a few ear gels of different sizes so you’ll get the best comfort and fit, and a short charging cable.
The Rowkin Bit Charge I reviewed
Comparing the specs on the website reveals some differences in size between the Bit Charge and the Micro, but that difference doesn’t seem to hold up when putting them side by side. They get the same three hours of talk or music as the Bit Charge and offer the same 27 hours of stand by time when powered on and 120 days when powered off. They also have the same frequency response of 20Hz-20kHz as the Bit Charge. In other words, despite what the website says, I’m going to conclude that the earbuds shipping with the Micro are the same as those shipped with the Bit Charge. Listening to them both reinforces that perception.
So what is the difference between the Bit Charge and the Micro? The charging case.
The Bit Charge ships with a sizable charging case that measures 3.58”(D) x 1.61” (L) x 0.93(H) and weighs 2.93 oz. By comparison, the charging case that ships with the Micro measures 1.46″ x 2.54″ x 0.88″ and weighs 1.05 oz.
The Bit Charge case is made of metal and houses a 2100 mAh battery that will not only recharge the earbuds 15 times, but it also has a full USB-A port that can deliver up to a full charge if your phone runs down. The Micro, on the other hand, has a charging case that is made of plastic and will recharge the earbuds a total of 4 times. It does not double as an external phone battery.
On the other hand, the charging case that comes with the Bit Charge leaves the earbuds exposed when not in use. More than once I have had the Bit Charge in my bag and had one or both buds fall out resulting in a frantic search of the recesses of my bag to find it. The Micro has a cover that snaps shut over the earbuds and keeps them protected when not in use.
If you don’t need your earbud case as an external phone battery, I recommend going with the Micro. It is smaller, lighter and keeps the earbuds safe and secure.
Now the good and the not-so-good news
The good news is that the Rowkin earbuds are extremely comfortable, disappear into your ears without the white “tail” of Apple’s AirPods hanging down and sound excellent. I was extremely surprised the first time I listened to the Bit Charge and was surprised again when I started using the Micro. The sound is quite good.
The bad news is that both the Bit Charge and the Micro can suffer from weak or dropped connections between the earbuds and with my iPhone. (The way the earbuds go truly wireless is that one earbud connects to the source device and the other connects to the first earbud.) This can, however, be solved (for the most part) by following the company’s explanations. This video shows the proper way to pair the earbuds to one another and the device:
I have always followed this guide, but it seems this issue is common enough that the product FAQ includes these two queries:
What if my right earbud (secondary) cuts out but the left (primary) works fine?
When two Rowkin earbuds are stereo paired, the left channel (primary) earbud connects with your phone (device) as well as right channel (secondary) earbud for stereo sound. If only the right earbud is experiencing a sound or connection problem, try rotating the right earbud by 90 degrees or so. This help line up the internal antenna between the two earbuds, prompting a better connection.
The antenna strips are located just under the Rowkin logo on the outer end of the earbud. To enhance stereo performance, make sure the left and right earbuds’ antennas are aligned parallel to each other. You can also orient the placement of the earbuds before inserting them into your ears, or rotate one of them until the stereo music stabilizes.
If the rotation or alignment does not improve this connection, please try the reset procedure with both earbuds, and then try the Stereo Pairing again.
Why is my connection unstable?
You may be experiencing some external interference that is causing the Bluetooth headset to drop the connection with your host device. There are a number of factors that can cause this to happen, WiFi signals are the biggest culprit of them all. If there is a ‘fade-out, fade-in’ issue coming from the headset, this means that the device recognizes that there is a signal interfering with the connection between your source device and earbuds.
The strength of Bluetooth connections depend on various things. A number of them include the signal strength of your device (ex: cell phone), the distance, the sensitivity of the remote device (ie: the Rowkin earbud), any obstruction between the two, and the surrounding environment. If the Bluetooth connection is interrupted, both the earbuds and the remote device will attempt to re-establish another connection.
If the Bluetooth connection to Rowkin earbud(s) seems to be unstable, try changing the position of your device relative to the Rowkin earbud. A direct line of sight is the best. For example, instead of placing your mobile device in a purse, try placing on a desk right in front of you.
The second suggestion is to try the reset procedure on the Rowkin earbud(s). You will need to Stereo Pair the two earbuds again. We also recommend deleting the pairing with your phone and adding back the pairing again. You can follow along on this video to reset your earbuds.
For this review, I decided to reset both the Bit Charge and the Micro and go through the process exactly the way the company suggests. I will admit the connection seems better this time although the fact that you do need to think about how you place the earbuds in your ears each time is a bit of a bummer.
Features:
- Ultra-Small Charging Case: Rowkin Micro charges and stores earbuds in an ultra-portable charging case that’s almost half the size of a business card.
- Siri Activation: With the built-in mic, access to Siri/Google Assistant is just a tap away, giving you a genuine hands-free, wireless stereo experience.
- Built-in-Mic: Rowkin Micro has noise reduction and echo cancellation and a built-in-mic for 4 hours of uninterrupted music and calls.
- Portable Earbud Charging: Rowkin Micro Earbuds can be easily charged in the charging case 4x. That’s up to 12 hours of full talk and listen time.
- Water Resistant: Perfect for sports, outdoor activity or daily use, the WaterSafe nano-coating technology makes the Rowkin Micro sweat proof, water resistant and IPX5 compliant.
- Premium Sound: Compatible with any smartphone or Bluetooth enabled device, the Rowkin Micro provides high-quality sound wherever you go.
The connection challenges are annoying, but the sound from the Rowkin is good enough that I am still using them on a regular basis. They sound extremely good and are so small that they disappear into your ear. I’m a fan… despite the issues. Check them out here.
Source: Company Supplied Review Sample of the rowan Micro True Wireless Earbuds
What I Like: Small; Good sound; Case recharges the earbuds up to four times; Charging case also protects the earbuds; Comfortable to wear
What Needs Improvement: Pairing and placement needs to be done precisely to minimize the connection issues that I, and others, have encountered